SEQUENCE: THE PROMISE

INT. L.A. HOUSE – BEDROOM – MORNING

Soft light filters through sheer curtains.

LILY sleeps on her side — hair fanned across the pillow, breath steady.

WILLIAM sits beside her, still.

Watching her like a vow.

He brushes a strand of hair from her face.

Leans in.

Kisses her forehead — a whisper of love.

She stirs. Barely.

He smiles.

Quiet.

Then rises.

EXT. L.A. STREET – DAY

WILLIAM and THOMAS walk together — not rushed, not idle. Intentional.

They pass storefronts.

William glances inside each one, eyes scanning.

Searching.

Mid-sentence, he stops. Something in a window catches his attention. We don’t see what it is — but his face softens.

He opens the door. Steps in.

EXT. HOUSE GARDEN – GOLDEN HOUR

Golden light spills across the garden like honey.

LILY kneels barefoot in the grass, tending flowers. White dress. Loose hair. The wind kisses her shoulders.

On the porch, WILLIAM watches. Still. The way she moves. The way the light holds her.

He walks to her.

Extends a hand.

She looks up. Takes it. Slowly. Rising.

WILLIAM
(soft)
You’re everything to me.
You know that?

She looks at him. A flicker of a smile.

He reaches into his pocket.

A ring. Simple. Timeless.

WILLIAM
Marry me.

A glint of light catches the gold.

It gleams.

She looks at him.

A breath catches.

Her eyes shine — full and quiet.

A long beat.

She doesn’t speak.

Just nods.

One tear falls.

He exhales — as if he’s been holding that breath for lifetimes.

He slides the ring onto her finger.

Her hand lifts to his neck.

CLOSE-UP – THEIR HANDS

His thumb over the band.

Her fingers over his heart.

WIDE SHOT – THE GARDEN

They lean in.

A kiss.

Unhurried.

Deep.

Like they’ve kissed in every life before this one.

They fold into each other.

Still. Whole.

The golden light wraps them — a soft halo.

Camera pulls back.

Slow.

Weightless.

Two figures — unmoving.

Home.

Fade to silence.

The world exhales.

SEQUENCE: THE STILLNESS

TRANSITION – MONTAGE

[MUSIC CUE: “From where we were” — Distant Cowboy]

(Note: Certain frames mirror Scene: THE BOOKSTORE – Vision Sequence.)

— Sunlight shifts through windows, casting long trails across wood and linen.

— Pages turn in a book.

— Her bare back — shadows of daisies bloom across her skin.

— His gaze, bathed in gold.

— Her hair glowing in backlight, his fingers brushing through it.

— Details of William’s back — warm skin, streaked with light.

— Lily in backlight — sheer dress floating around her.

— CLOSE-UP: William’s lips on Lily’s shoulder.

— Her POV: fingers reaching through sunlight.

— Two shadows on the wall — Lily and William — inching toward each other. They embrace. Their outlines merge. Two become one.

— The light moves across their home. Slow. Certain. Golden.

— Sand slips through her fingers. Effortless. Unnoticed. The wind carries the last grains into sunlight.

— She walks toward the light — like something was calling her.

INT. L.A. HOUSE – AFTERNOON

Golden light spills through the open windows, casting a warm haze across the living room.

William sits on the floor, back against the couch.

A book in hand. Still. Present. Behind him, Lily moves through the space — unhurried.

She wears her engagement ring.

Sunlight catches on the stone — sending flickers of light onto the walls.

She notices.

Smiles — quiet, private.

She lifts her hand slightly.

A beam of light lands on William’s face.

He squints.

Smiles — doesn’t look up. Shakes his head.

She moves the reflection again — This time, it rests over his chest.

Right over his heart.

He finally lowers the book.

Looks at the soft light glowing on his shirt.

His smile lingers — but his eyes shift.

There’s something deeper behind them now.

She moves toward him.

Sits down.

Leans her head against his shoulder.

No words. Just breath.

SFX:

The music fades into the soft sound of distant waves.

A seagull. Faint. As if memory itself is washing in.

And the moment holds —

Still. Glowing. Suspended in gold.

DISSOLVE TO:

SEQUENCE: THE WAVE

EXT. BEACH – PRE-DAWN

The sky rests in soft blue and silver — that breathless hush before sunrise.

The ocean whispers gently against the shore.

Everything glows in ambient light.

No sun. No shadows. Just stillness.

LILY and WILLIAM walk barefoot along the wet sand.

Unhurried.

She holds his hand, close. Wrapped in the quiet of morning.

Then, she lets go.

Drifts toward the waterline.

Turns to face him — walking backward now.

A playful smile lingers on her lips.

CLOSE-UP – LILY’S FACE

Eyes bright. Wind catching her scarf.

Silent laughter dances there — pure, present.

CLOSE-UP – WILLIAM’S FACE

He watches her. Like he’s trying to memorize every inch of her.

They keep walking.

Light between them. No words. Only presence.

WIDE PROFILE – DISTANCE BETWEEN THEM

Three meters. Maybe less.

She steps back again — smiling —

Then—


She collapses.

No sound.

No warning.

Just—her body, folding into the sand.

William stops.

Stares.

A beat.

He doesn’t move.

His body won’t register it yet.

Then — he runs.

SMASH CUT TO:

INT. DOCTOR’S OFFICE – DAY (SILENCE)

Muted.

Camera slowly pulls back.

The doctor’s head moves — speaking.

But we don’t hear him.

Just the sound leaving the room.

CLOSE-UP – LILY & WILLIAM

Their faces begin to shift.

Confusion.

Then disbelief.

Then the beginning of grief.

The doctor's voice is a murmur now — drowned under a rising RINGING tone.

Faint at first. Then louder.

WILLIAM’S FACE

Tightens. Breaks.

He looks at Lily — like he can’t find the ground.

LILY’S FACE

Frozen.

She’s not here. Not fully.

She stares at the doctor.

Nods — slowly.

Then looks down — into a place we can’t see.

Trying to hold it. But it slips through her.

WIDE PROFILE SHOT

The two sit motionless.

The doctor’s hands move gently. His voice is distant.

SLOW ZOOM OUT

The space between us and them grows.

Their stillness becomes louder than any sound.

SCENE: THE SHATTER

INT. LIVING ROOM – EVENING

DETAIL: The front door opens. Slowly.

WIDE SHOT:

Their home — once vibrant, humming with life — now feels vast and hollow.

Still daylight, but it’s dimming.

Shadows stretch across the walls.

The quiet is thick.

William and Lily step in.

Their movements are slow. Heavy.

Lily walks ahead — face blank, far away.

William lingers behind.

Reaches for her hand —

Then stops himself.

Lets it fall.

Lily stops at the open garden doors.

CLOSE-UP – LILY

Evening light paints her face.

But her eyes… they’re nowhere near here.

A sadness too big to hold.

She inhales.

The scent of flowers drifts in from the garden.

Familiar. Too familiar.

It hits her lungs like a memory she didn’t ask for.

WIDE SHOT:

She stands still.

The breeze moves around her, through her.

William watches from behind — Posture caved.

Eyes brimming.

Suddenly, Lily turns —

And walks fast toward the kitchen.

INT. KITCHEN – CONTINUOUS

She stops at the counter.

Her eyes land on the calendar.

Frozen. Breath shallow.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

The silence wraps around her — thick, unbearable.

Something inside her drops.

LILY
(whispers)
This can’t be real...

William enters — slow, careful.

He reaches for her arm.

She pulls away.

Frantic now.

She bolts back into the living room.

INT. LIVING ROOM – CONTINUOUS

Lily clutches her head.

Her breathing quickens — sharp, erratic.

Her chest rises too fast, too hard —

Like the air is turning against her.

She staggers back — hands trembling —

Eyes wide, unseeing.

A sob punches through her.

Then another.

And then—

She BREAKS.

LILY
(screaming)
WHY?!
WHY ME?!

She collapses to her knees —

Not gentle — violently.

The floor catches her like a blow.

Her hand flails out — finds the table.

Her eyes land on the crystal vase.

Frozen.

Then— something inside her SNAPS.

She GRABS it —

SMASH.

It explodes against the wall.

SLOW MOTION – GLASS IN THE AIR

Shards catch the light —

Brief, beautiful, brutal.

They rain down like frozen tears.

Like stars falling wrong.

CLOSE-UP — GLASS SHARDS ON THE FLOOR

A thousand broken pieces.

A mirror of her.

She shakes — Sobbing from the deepest part of her being.

The kind of sob that doesn’t sound human.

The kind that leaves scars.

WILLIAM stops in the doorway.

He freezes.

He’s lost.

Helpless.

She lifts her head.

Looks at him.

Not a glance — A full, trembling gaze.

Tears streak her face.

Wide open — pain, fear, surrender.

That’s all it takes.

He moves.

Falls to his knees.

Wraps his arms around her — desperate, tender.

Holds her like she might disappear.

No words.

Just the sound of her breaking.

And him — breaking with her.

She looks up, face streaked with tears.

LILY
(whispers)
I don’t want to leave yet...
(beat)
I don’t even feel like I truly lived yet...

William cups her face. Gentle. Grounding.

WILLIAM
(voice trembling)
Then we live.
Every moment we have — we live it.

WIDE SHOT:

They hold each other.

Tears.

Silence.

Grief and love, wrapped around one another.

A long beat.

(M83 – “Outro” begins: 00:00 – 00:05)

FADE TO BLACK.

[published 6/7/2025]
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